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Russia: Communications satellite prepares for April launch

Posted on: Thursday, 4 March 2004, 06:00 CST

Text of report in English by Russian news agency ITAR-TASS

The testing of the satellite Express-AM11 on mechanical impact, functional testing of its onboard systems, platform and payload module was successfully completed at the Reshetnev scientific and production applied mechanics amalgamation in Zheleznogorsk near Krasnoyarsk.

The launching of the satellite is scheduled for April 2004, a source in the Reshetnev scientific and production applied mechanics amalgamation told ITAR-TASS. Express-AM11 is the second from five space vehicles created by the scientific and production applied mechanics amalgamation under the contract with the Russian satellite communication operator Kosmicheskaya svyaz (Space communication). The French company Alcatel Space is a sub-contractor of the Russian scientific and production applied mechanics amalgamation on the payload module. New satellites differ from their predecessors by the term of operation on the orbit. It was prolonged up to 12 years. The capacity of the transmitting equipment has also been increased. The first satellite of the Express-AM22 family was put into the orbit in December 2003.

The Reshetnev scientific and production applied mechanics amalgamation is one of the leading Russian companies for the development and creating space communication, television broadcasting, navigation and geodesy systems. As may as 75 per cent of Russian satellites are produced in Zheleznogorsk.

[Express AM-11 is scheduled for launch on 4 April, and will be stationed at the 96.5 degrees east orbital position, replacing the Gorizont 28 satellite which relays Moscow-based TV channels to the Russian far east.]

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